Mud Minnows?

Finger Mullet?

Shad?

Live Shrimp?

I am trying to get enough info. for flounder fishing in waders or off a dyke.

I hook mud minnows and mullet the same way. A circle hook up from the bottom of the mouth and out the top of the head between the eyes and the nose.

Hook shad any way you want, they will be dead in a minute anyway.

Hook live shrimp through the crown of their head shell.

what size/type of hook is appropriate for flounder fishing? I've been using regular eagle claw hooks and when I bait the mud minnows and cast out my line, most of the time they fall off the hook before it hits the water. maybe my hook is too big and tearing the mouth right off it??? i'm not too sure. somebody help me.

I also have the similar problem when I tried to hook dead shrimp. They always seem to come off in mid air.

We use a 1/0 flounder hook, or if you prefer, a #6 (3X) treble hook (tied directly to the line or leader...no hardware at the hook!)......in either case, we hook either shad or finger mullet thusly:

Through the mouth; open the mouth, insert the tip of the hook pointing upward, just into the hard palate (well beyond the lip tissue)pushing straight up going throught the mass just in front of the eyes and still behind the lip, then out...do not go "between" the eyes but rather just forward of them. This will allow them to "breathe" by maintaining the ability to continue to move their lower jaw. First few times you do this may be scarificial of sorts, but you'll soon get the nack of it!. Another option is "through the tail"...insert the hook laterally just in front of the beginning of the caudal and out the other side. You can also do the tail-hook thing with the killifish, if you like.

We hook the mm's through both the upper and lower lips using the same caveats as above.

Dead shrimp will stay better if you hook them laterally through and through and then repeat it close to the tail...or hook them longitudinally starting at the head and out at the tail on the bottom side. If you're using a treble hook, just "roll" the shrimp to the inside and around the hook shank and press it down over all three barbs at the same time. These techniques work best with shrimp that has not been peeled...but, if you're fishing for croaker, they often hit better on peeled shrimp!(go figure!) Fresh shrimp makes a big difference too! We buy shrimp wiithout heads.

Good Luck!

Here are a couple of links with diagrams to help get you started.

Click here for rigging shrimp!

Click here for rigging minnows and other various baits!

thanks snagle_toof, i kinda had an idea on both but learned sonething i didnt know , it was about the scent of shrimp with the tail fan removed, hhhhhuuuummmmm

if your throwing bait off your hook than you are being to herky jerky and need to practice casting. If you have a nice smooth cast than your bait should not fly off. Casting is sorta like a golf shot. It takes timing and rythm and not sheer power. Also, when hooking live baitfish, of any kind, I like to hook them right above the anus. They swim upwards when hooked like this, thus keeping them from hanging up on the bottom and staying in the strike zone.

Your welcome Terry!

the shrimp hook under the horn around the head but bo not go down to far or you will kill the shrimp. everything i hook in the tail and the bait swims naturally.

Thanks for the tips I like the shrimp idea of removing the tail also. I'll give it a try.